Warrenton police officers recently went into schools and fired shots.

Students were off that day and teachers and staff knew the shots were coming, they just didn’t know when or where they would be coming from. 

They heard gunfire on the move and saw smoky hallways. They looked for ways to protect students and themselves. Should they run, hide or fight? 

It all seemed too real, but it was just a practice scenario. 

“It was interesting to see the reaction of the teachers and how serious it became,” said Assistant Superintendant Dr. Aaron Jones. 

School shootings aren’t as uncommon as they should be. On April 20, 1999, 13 people were killed and 20 were injured when two teenagers entered Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., with guns drawn. 

At the time it was the worst high school shooting in history. The tragedy is still remembered. To some, it has been a playbook for copycats. 

Since 2000, more than 200 people have died in school shootings and countless other children and adults injured. In 2007, 33 people were killed at Virginia Tech. Five years later, on Dec. 14, 2012, 20 children and six adults were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. 

Schools and lawmakers lost that secure feeling of “that wouldn’t happen here.” In a state of uncertainty, they became proactive. 

Warren County School District administration and staff, along with School Resource Officer Kevin Swofford and Sgt. Matt Mosher of the Warrenton Police Department, organized the live training event for an active shooter. Secondary teachers went through live training Oct. 23 at Warrenton High School. Elementary teachers and staff were trained Dec. 6 at Black Hawk Middle School.

“We wanted teachers to hear the different noises, like gun shots, in a controlled environment,” Jones said.

Swofford said the event started with a presentation. Teachers and school staff signed on for different levels of participation. Full participation meant someone could be hit with a Airsoft gun, aka BB gun. People did get shot.  

“Oh yeah, we shot some teachers,” said Swofford.

“They were prepared and dressed properly,” Jones said.

No teachers were hurt during the exercise. 

Being a teacher or working in a school and with kids, they said, isn’t just about education. Teachers are life coaches, educators, providers of care and security guards.  

During the exercise, both  Jones and Swofford found out teachers and staff had a natural reaction to put their lives on the line for their students. 

Wright City Schools also have secure entrances and school resource officers, andw provide active shooter training. As with Warren County schools, safety is taken very seriously. 

“We have emergency personnel in our buildings on a regular basis, having lunch in our buildings, and enjoy a great relationship with them,” said Superintendent David Buck. “We have cameras throughout the district and on buses. We have night and weekend checks of the facilities.” 

Buck said active shooter training became a requirement for schools a few years ago. 

The Active Shooter and Intruder Response Training for Schools Program (ASIRT) went into effect July 1, 2014. It encourages Missouri schools to provide active shooter training to teachers and staff. 

“By law, the training has to be done by local law enforcement, not by school personnel,” Buck said. “Our SRO provides annual training on what to do and what emergency personnel needs them to do during the event of an active shooter situation.” 

Neither school district includes students in the live training.   

“(Almost everyone) is very active and wants to know more,” Swofford said after the training. “I was very pleased with how every one of them said it was eye-opening.” 

Swofford said teachers have been coming to him, saying they are more aware about safety and taking extra steps to make their classrooms safer.